Choosing Christmas Trees

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree, how lovely are your branches…”

Or are they?

Choosing Christmas Trees can be an activity fraught with worry when it should be a fun event. Whether it’s real Christmas tree or an artificial one, how do you know the tree you buy is of good quality and won’t harm the environment?

The argument would seem to be that live, cut Christmas trees are the ‘greenest’ option. This takes into consideration the amount of carbon dioxide they absorb whilst growing.

As ever there are pros and cons. One could say that the land used for farming Christmas trees (both cut and living, potted trees) should be used for edible crops.

To me that would be a stronger argument for having artificial trees than the bandying of statistics. However, there are the questions. For example, is the land suitable for edible crops? How many air miles has the artificial tree racked up?

The Christmas tree is supposed to be representative of life in the midst of winter, at the Winter Solstice, the darkest time of the year in the northern hemisphere. So it should by that argument be a proper, living tree.

Yet many people feel that having a real tree only adds to the stress of their Christmas. Perhaps they have very little time off work to enjoy a real tree. Or perhaps the whole experience of finding the time to choose a tree every year, then looking after it, and tidying up the mess is just too much.

Here are a few pointers which may help you choose which type of tree would best suit your lifestyle:-

Choosing Christmas Trees – ‘Cut’ Trees

Cut Christmas trees are a farmed product, ie they are cultivated in order to be cut and sold. They are generally recycled after Christmas by shredding them into mulch, which is then used as part of green waste compost or directly onto the soil. This means that the carbon and nitrogen is put back into the soil and the Christmas tree forms part of the natural cycle.

There are plenty of trees grown in the UK, so check out the Forestry Commission’s and the British Christmas Tree Growers’ websites for a sustainably grown local tree near you.

Choosing Christmas Trees – ‘Living’ Trees

Container grown or living Christmas trees are also a farmed product. Like the cut trees, the Christmas trees bought as ‘living’ trees in pots will have been grown over a period of years. During this time, every acre of trees has been providing oxygen for about eighteen people a day.

They are often chosen in preference to cut trees as being less likely to drop needles all over the carpet. Unfortunately, after Christmas, many languish at the bottom of their owners’ garden, dying a slow, un-watered death because the majority of gardens are too small for them to be planted. However, if your garden is big enough and you’re prepared to dig it up every year then this can be a special family tree

If you want to send a tree as a present, there are ‘table top’ sized options which are rather good. Or you could try something a bit different and have a ‘topiary’ tree instead; for example a real Buxus (box) or Holly (Ilex) pruned to a Christmas tree shape or as a standard in a pot.

Choosing Christmas Trees – Artificial Trees

If the thought of vacuuming up needles until February doesn’t appeal and you’d like an artificial Christmas tree then go for a quality one that will last many years. This way you spread out the airmiles and energy use. You could also have an artificial topiary Christmas tree, made on a frame filled with evergreens and baubles.

An artificial Christmas tree may be a more practical option for those who live on upper floors without lifts: carrying an 8’ tree up to the fourth floor is an experience…

Choosing Christmas Trees – Plews 2011 tree choices

What are we having in 2011? A mixture; a small wire tree I made years ago; and a real tree. I love the scent as well as the tradition of going out on Advent Sunday to pick and purchase a Christmas tree.

We have had a living tree in the past: Abies koreana, with beautiful blue cones. After a couple of years I donated to a friend with a larger garden. For our family the Christmas tree is important. We don’t go overboard with presents but we do love to deck the house in greenery and shimmering decorations.

The Cutty Sark in Greenwich, decorated with a Christmas tree on her main mast; the ship was still undergoing refurbushment following a major fire at the time.

If you’re looking for a Christmas gift with a difference, why not ask about our bespoke Gardening Lessons, where your classroom is actually your own garden? We can help with both gardening basics and more ‘expert tasks’, carry out worm and other experiments and for example, also show you how to plan a wildlife friendly ornamental border.

And for further gardening advice and inspiration, check out Plews Potting Shed blogs, including the selection below and our monthly Tipsheet – You could come and find us on Instagram Pinterest and Facebook too.

And for those of you who like Christmas – why not download our eBook “Christmas and Yule in Your Garden“? Based on the seasonal blogs it has addtiional content and photos.